Hope springs eternal at Villa Park. Their 2-1 win at the Emirates last week was a sound indication of how well the team has gelled in recent weeks, and they go into their final game of the season with hopes of finishing as high as ninth.

Given that as recently as January, they were in the relegation zone after losing to Sunderland, Villa can be mighty pleased with their efforts. That £24 million they forked out for Darren Bent has had a tangible and immediate effect.

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Besides that well-worn trope of ‘finishing the season on a high’, there is plenty else to motivate them. The financial difference between finishing ninth and 14th is over £4 million. Nothing to play for?

But now one resurgence coincides with another. Liverpool will be keen to give new permanent manager Kenny Dalglish a crack at European football next season, and if they can improve on Tottenham’s result against Birmingham they will qualify for the Europa League, football’s second most pointless competition after the Confederations Cup.